The
Changing Course Newsletter
Issue 101
October 13th, 2004
The free
newsletter from
http://www.ChangingCourse.com
Dedicated to
helping you:
~ Live Life
on Purpose
~ Work at
What You Love
~ Follow
Your Own Road
OUTLOOK 2003
USERS: Restore the extra line breaks for the
best
formatting by right clicking in the gray line that reads
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In this
issue:
Featured Article: Val’s Picks
& Ponderings
Ask
the Expert: Travel Writing Expert, Jen Stevens
Guest Article: Lifestyle Changes – a Conscious Choice!
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TODAY’S WISE
WORDS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then
they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become
inevitable. ~ Christopher Reeve
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Val’s Picks
& Ponderings
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This week I
have five helpful resources for writers – or those who aspire to be!
Not a
writer? Then take a moment to support someone else’s dream by passing these
resources along to any family, friends, or co-workers with a passion for
writing.
1) The
Writer's Digest 5th Annual “Short Short” Story Competition
Writer’s
Digest is looking for fiction that’s “bold, brilliant...but brief.” Stories
must be 1,500 words or less. 1st Place: $3,000. 2nd Place $1,500, 3rd Place:
$500, 4th - 10th Place: $100, 11th - 25th Place: $50 gift certificate for
Writer's Digest Books.
Deadline:
Wednesday, December 01, 2004.
Learn more
at
http://www.WritersDigest.com/contests/short_story.asp
2) Do You Have a Self-Published Book?
You can win
$3,000 in cash, gain international exposure for your book, and catch the
attention of prospective editors and publishers. The 12th Annual Writer's
Digest International Self-Published Book Awards Co-sponsored by Book
Marketing Works, LLC is searching for the best self-published books of the
past few years.
Whether
you’re a professional writer, part-time freelancer, or a self-starting
student, here’s your chance to enter the only competition exclusively
for self-published books.
Categories
include:
~Mainstream/Literary Fiction
~Genre
Fiction
~Nonfiction
~Inspirational (spiritual, New Age)
~Life
Stories (biographies, autobiographies, family histories, memoirs)
~Children's
and Young Adult books
~Reference
Books (directories, encyclopedias, guide books)
~Poetry
~Cookbooks
Deadline is
Wednesday, December 15, 2004. Learn more at
http://www.WritersDigest.com/contests/self_published.asp
3) About.com
Needs “Guides” to Write and Manage Online Topics
Do you have a passion for reality TV, low-fat cooking, computer animation,
shoes, birds, or vintage cars? You can earn a minimum of $500 and establish
yourself as an online expert by becoming an About.com Guide.
As a Guide you become the online leader of a community of people who share
your interest. Your mission is to create an easy, intuitive and gratifying
experience for people interested in their topic. Every site has a photo of
the Guide and a bio. Click here for an example:
http://retireplan.about.com/cs/budgeting/a/gasoline.htm
Each Guide is carefully screened and trained by About. Guides write original
informative articles, provide the Web’s best links for their topics, and
give their readers what they need to know. To be a Guide you need:
~ a true
knowledge of and a passion for your topic
~ commitment
to creating informative, “what you need to know” features
~ a
dedication to building and updating a comprehensive links directory
~ the
ability to bring your site to life
~ strong
writing and editing skills
~ basic HTML
skills
Guide compensation is based on page views. Each Guide is assigned a unique
page view rate for each thousand page views the site gets each a month. In
addition to the page view rate, there are also incentives for growing
traffic. No matter what their page view rate is, Guides get paid a minimum
of $500 for their first full-month on the network and are guaranteed at
least $500 as long as they increase page views each month. Most Guides
estimate that it takes them between 10-20 hours per week. Learn more at
http://guide.about.com/
4) How to
Get Happily Published
In the 20 years since it first appeared, hundreds
of thousands of writers – professionals as well as beginners – have read,
followed and benefited from Judith Appelbaum’s
“How to Get Happily Published.” This new edition adds material on
making deals with publishers (and what's important), working with small
publishers (and when that's preferable), capitalizing on contacts (and where
to make them), deciding whether to self-publish (and how much that costs),
using new electronic media (to publish; to get information, publicity,
promotion and sales; and to connect with enthusiastic readers), and making
your work sell better (whoever the publisher is).
Plus hundreds of new resources – books, magazines, newspapers, newsletters,
groups, experts and internet sites covering every step of the publishing
process.
Find it in the Changing Course Bookstore at
http://www.ChangingCourse.com/bookstore.htm
5) Write
Books for Children and Teens
If you have
a passion for young people, and would love to make money writing for
children or teenagers, read on. For over 34 years, the Institute for
Children's Literature has been helping aspiring writers like you become
published – and paid – writers.
The course
materials are outstanding, plus you'll be matched with a published author
who'll review each assignment and help propel you to success. The course is
affordable, you can take it at your own pace, and many students sell
articles before even finishing the course.
To learn
more, read my complete review at
http://www.ChangingCourse.com/children.htm
Off the
beaten path career counselor, Valerie Young, abandoned her corporate cubicle
to become the Dreamer in Residence at
http://www.ChangingCourse.com, offering free resources to help
you discover your life mission and live it. An expert on the Imposter
Syndrome, she’s presented her How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone
Seems to Think You Are program to over 30,000 people. Find more articles
written by Valerie at
http://www.ChangingCourse.com/articles/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ASK THE
EXPERT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ONLY A FEW SEATS LEFT!
What if you could get paid to visit white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife
sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways...Rome... Paris...
London...?
Good news: You can! Listen in as Jen Stevens, writer and contributing editor
for International Living and author of the Passport to Romance: The Ultimate
Travel Writer's Course explains exactly what it takes to get paid to travel
for a living as a freelance travel writer. Also on hand will be Lori
Appling, manager of the American Writers and Artists Institute’s
travel-writing training program.
If you love to travel, be sure to join us Thursday, October 14th from 8:00pm
– 8:50pm EST for this FREE teleclass! We only have a few seats left, so
click here to register:
http://www.ChangingCourse.com/courses.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INSPIRATION
TO FOLLOW YOUR BLISS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Change is a
measure of time and, in the autumn, time seems speeded up. What was
is not and never again will be; what is is change. ~ Edwin Way Teale
The best way
to predict your future is to create it. – Unknown
The big
break for me was deciding that this is my life. ~ Jon Stewart
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GUEST
ARTICLE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lifestyle Changes – a
Conscious Choice!
By Ingela Berger
Are you ready for a change? Is it time for those plans
that you've been thinking about for so long?
Now is a good time for making plans, for lifestyle
changes, starting over, finding new directions and developing as a human
being. Now is a very good time for creating your own personal lifestyle and
a life that you have chosen to live.
Let there always be cross-roads!
Let me tell you what I think about cross-roads. There
will always be new cross-roads. And I really hope they will be many. How
boring life would be if there weren't any new directions to choose. We would
just be walking straight ahead and never find out what else there is to
know. We would never discover the narrow paths that lead into something new
and unexplored. If we always choose the straight long road we will not
develop as human beings. We will not realize all the qualities and
possibilities that we all possess.
Some cross-roads can be tough on us. We can be forced to
change directions. Something happens unexpectedly and we move into a crisis.
This will happen to us all sooner or later. The changes that we choose
consciously are "better" than the ones that hurt, of course. But we develop
and grow as a result of both.
I have experienced both kinds of cross-roads. I have lost
near and dear ones, and I had no choice but to see it happen. I have also
made choices of my own - choices that have changed my life in many ways.
By making conscious choices we are able to make positive
lifestyle changes. Instead of letting things happen we can take control. We
have the power to make changes.
I would like to encourage you in your decision to build
something new, something better! I want to inspire you to see the
possibilities, and I am convinced that you have the power to make positive
changes in your life. It’s a choice. You can build a better life! You have
the possibilities and the power to make positive lifestyle changes. No one
else can make the right choices for your life. But you can.
It's time to start feeling better! You deserve it! Reduce
stress, start exercising, change career, or learn something new and
different for your own personal development. Start today by taking that
first step to a more fulfilling lifestyle!
Remember: The only ones that never fail are the ones that
never try.
Ingela Berger started her own Internet business Lifestyle
Plans
in 2003 out of a desire to inspire and encourage others
to make
reality of their dreams of a personal, healthy and
fulfilling
lifestyle. Ingela has studied theatre directing, history
of art,
and leadership psychology. After some years working
with art exhibitions and the theatre she is now back at
school
to become a health and lifestyle consultant. You can find
her online at
http://www.lifestyleplans.com
live life on purpose
